Cost-Buster Cooking: Dress up a grilled cheese with the greatest of ease

Grilled cheese sandwiches are a Rodney Dangerfield food. They “don’t get no respect.” And I think I understand why.A few years ago I wrote a book about mac and cheese, and discovered that many Americans...

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By
Ellen Brown
Posted Jun. 11, 2014 @ 12:01 am

Grilled cheese sandwiches are a Rodney Dangerfield food. They “don’t get no respect.” And I think I understand why.

A few years ago I wrote a book about mac and cheese, and discovered that many Americans were really prejudiced against this quintessential comfort food. It was only after they started enjoying expensive Italian meals where it was called “pasta” rather than mac and cheese could they see beyond the “blue box.”

Grilled cheese sandwiches suffer in a similar way. To revel in their glory, you have to see past not a blue box, but a bread bag emblazoned with colorful balloons and cheese that’s neatly wrapped in individual slices. While that sandwich sustained our troops during World War II, and still makes a frequent appearance in school cafeterias, there’s a whole world out there in which grilled cheese sandwiches are complexly flavored and contain textural variation.

I’ve been playing around with grilled cheese sandwiches for years, and discovered, as I did with mac and cheese, that the best ones contained a combination of cheeses, all of which are combined before being spread onto the bread. One of my favorite combinations is Cheddar and brie, with a ratio of four to one. Gouda goes well with Gruyère in equal parts, and combining Parmesan with mozzarella creates a creamy sandwich.

And then there’s the bread. While I use focaccia or ciabatta for panini, I use pre-sliced American bread for grilled cheese. But one with substance, like sourdough bread instead of white, or whole grain bread. These breads toast up well, which is what you’re after.

And don’t forget the additions. Anything from fresh herb leaves, sautéed apple or pear, thinly sliced tomato, ham, crisp bacon, turkey or chicken, to leftover ratatouille or ragú Bolognese can become part of the sandwich.

So for Father’s Day this year, give the guy a day off from the barbecue. Make him a grilled cheese sandwich. They really can be for grown-ups.

Cost-Buster Cooking tips

I make a big batch of mixed cheese fillings at a time, and then freeze patties of them between two sheets of waxed paper. Make the patties the size of a slice of bread, and there’s no need to thaw the cheese when you want a sandwich. Just keep the flame very low at first until it melts.

If you’re going to use a ridged griddle pan or an electric grill or sandwich press to make the sandwich rather than a skillet, spread the bread with softened butter first. But if you’re using a skillet with a flat bottom without ridges, melt the butter right in the pan. Dip one slice of bread in the melted butter, place it on top of the filling of the sandwich, and then place the sandwich into the skillet so that the bottom piece of bread gets coated.

Using a compound butter rather than plain butter is another way to add more flavor to a sandwich. I’ve mixed softened butter with everything from garlic and parsley to Dijon mustard.

Melt 1 tablespoon in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes, or until softened. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and scrape the shallot into a mixing bowl.

Return the skillet to the stove and add 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the apple slices, and sprinkle them with the sugar. Cook, stirring gently, for 3 minutes, or until the apples are crisp-tender. Set aside.

Combine the Cheddar and brie in a food processor fitted with the steel blade and chop finely using on-and-off pulsing. Add the shallots, and pulse to combine.

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees and cover a baking sheet with foil.

Divide the cheese mixture onto 4 slices of the bread, and top with apple slices and ham. Melt 2 tablespoons of the remaining butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Dip 2 bread slices into the butter and then top the sandwiches with them. Place the 2 sandwiches into the skillet with the cheese mixture side down. Press lightly with a spatula and cover the skillet. Cook over medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until toasted. Carefully turn over the sandwiches and toast the other side.

Transfer the sandwiches to the baking sheet and keep them warm in the oven while frying the remaining 2 sandwiches in the same manner. Serve immediately. Makes 4.

Note: The sandwiches can be ready to fry up to a day in advance and refrigerated, tightly covered.

Italian Grilled Cheese Sandwich

5 ounces provolone

3 ounces whole-milk mozzarella

8 slices white sourdough sandwich bread, or bread of choice

2 ounces thinly sliced Genoa salami

1/3 cup firmly packed fresh basil leaves

2 ripe plum tomatoes, cored, seeded, and thinly sliced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

Combine the provolone and mozzarella in a food processor fitted with the steel blade and chop finely using on-and-off pulsing.

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees and cover a baking sheet with foil.

Divide the cheese mixture onto 4 slices of the bread, and top with the salami, basil, and tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Dip 2 bread slices into the butter and then top the sandwiches with them. Place the 2 sandwiches into the skillet with the cheese mixture side down. Press lightly with a spatula and cover the skillet. Cook over medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until toasted. Carefully turn over the sandwiches and toast the other side.

Transfer the sandwiches to the baking sheet and keep them warm in the oven while frying the remaining 2 sandwiches in the same manner. Serve immediately. Makes 4.

Note: The sandwiches can be ready to fry up to a day in advance and refrigerated, tightly covered.